


A Hummingbird in A Cage

by ThatScottishShipper



Series: DBH Rarepairs Week 2020 [2]
Category: Detroit: Become Human (Video Game)
Genre: Ambiguous Relationships, Ambiguous/Open Ending, Angst, DBH Rarepairs Week, Death Threats, Deviancy (Detroit: Become Human), Deviant Original Chloe | RT600, F/M, Fear, Fight or Flight, Kamski Test (Detroit: Become Human), Panic Attacks, Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder - PTSD, dont repost to another site
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-04-04
Updated: 2020-04-04
Packaged: 2021-02-28 18:49:02
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 633
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23481949
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ThatScottishShipper/pseuds/ThatScottishShipper
Summary: After literally facing death down the barrel of a gun, Chloe has never been the same. She is unable to talk, or obey Kamski without a strange error taking over her.The aftermath of the Kamski Test.Written for DBH Rarepairs Week 2020. Day 2 prompt, “Fight or Flight.”
Relationships: Original Chloe | RT600/Elijah Kamski
Series: DBH Rarepairs Week 2020 [2]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1687243
Comments: 4
Kudos: 28





	A Hummingbird in A Cage

Chloe never spoke since that day.

No matter how much Kamski complimented her eternal beauty, _like a flower that would never wither_ , the RT600 stayed silent, perhaps an acknowledging nod at most.

Nothing more.

Often, Chloe stood perfectly still by the large window, her frame frozen in the mirror to the blizzard raging outside. Inside her mind, she kept repeating a terrifying image.

A gun to her head, trapped inside a shell she could not break free from. That trembling hand, something resembling human emotion in those soft brown eyes, _fear_ … 

And an endless red wall burning behind crystal blue eyes, static words scorched into her HUD. Never before had **[OBEY]** overloaded her system with such confliction.

She was frozen, but desiring flight.

“Chloe?”

Everything tensed, like her body rebelled against her instinctual commands compelling her to **[RUN.]** She remained rooted to the spot, her Thirium pump ravaging inside her chest cavity, as her temperature bleeded cold.

But nowhere near as cold as that voice sounded. Did he always sound like that?

“My dear Chloe, do you require my assistance?”

 _No_ , she screamed, her glacial gaze stayed soft. But Chloe’s entire being remained unmoving, not a word daring to escape. How could she, remembering that sleek black metal in the nearby desk?

Termination at the end of a bullet, at _his_ whim? That was all she was, a plastic plaything, to be thrown away in an experiment.

Beautiful soft lips parted, but no words came out.

Chloe saw his frown in the glass reflection, knowing he was right behind her. An entire system went into overdrive inside a withdrawn shell, a hummingbird in a cage.

With a flick of the wrist, Elijiah dismissed the other Chloes drifting in the blood red pool. As wet feet grew more distant until they could no longer be heard, the RT600 could not fathom why she felt so lonely when she was not alone.

Not with Elijiah behind her, those keen eyes observing for signs of Deviancy, as he always did.

Her temperature receptors were at optimal levels, nothing reported astray, and yet, everything was wrong.

The sounds of the snowflakes against the glass in front of them, an orchestral serenade, and her own Thirium pump clocking overtime.

A hard red blink swallowed her LED, reflected back at her, wide blue eyes conveying a profound horror. The sight of his analytical look terrified her more as he approached from behind.

**[No.]**

Those slender hands upon her shoulders, capable of creation, but also torment. Like placing tools of destruction in another one's hands. As the pressure settled, so too did the panic.

Her pre construction software kicked in, presenting two virtual Chloes in polygonal blue figures. One stood as she was, by the window, supported by the hands of her creators.

The other, forced onto her knees upon the cream woollen rug, her fate in the hands of a stranger.

And even though they were alone, the statistical likelihood marked staggeringly high for this outcome. And she did not know why.

“Chloe…”

Then, Elijiah’s forehead pressed against her shoulder, and she shivered. As his other hand secured upon her other shoulder, Chloe felt something inside her break. It was like her reality fractured into a thousand shards, the snowstorm swallowing everything inside.

She gasped, her first breath, her plump eyelashes fluttering wildly with the strange flush sweeping inside her. Her LED blinked, and for a horrifying moment, she remembered that RK800 in the aftermath, lowering his gun, being led away by the Lieutenant.

After dancing with death.

She clenched her fists at her side, raising her head to gaze at the man’s reflection. “...I didn’t want to die…”

The hands upon her shoulders squeezed softly, that trembled voice a vulnerable whisper, one she never heard before.

“ _I know..._ ”

**Author's Note:**

> Written for DBH Rarepairs Week 2020. Day 2 prompt, “Fight or Flight.” Chloe x Kamski, nominated by GamUnite and IshidaSado.
> 
> This was a strange one to write once I drew Chloe x Kamski for these prompts. The idea of a Fight or Flight prompt for Chloe began to tie together in the aftermath of the Kamski chapter where she has a gun pointed at her. That would leave an impact, wouldn’t it? Especially if the command came from someone she obeyed.
> 
> Chloe is mostly written from the Flight/Frozen perspective, unable to talk, withdrawing into herself, trying to avoid things that remind her of that moment.
> 
> It might not be the most romantic ship fic out there, but I wanted to imagine a what if, what might have followed. Leaving it open and ambiguous felt right for the prompt, where it could be left up to the reader where they proceed from there.
> 
> Thank you very much for reading, and I hope you enjoyed it. 💙


End file.
